ZWO ASI294MC Pro USB 3.0 Cooled Colour Astronomy CMOS Camera

ASI 294 MC Pro is the first camera in the world that is equipped with SONY's latest sensor IMX294CJK.

IMX294CJK

Diagonal 21.63 mm (Type 4/3) Approx. 10.71M-Effective Pixel Color CMOS Image Sensor, This is the official description on Sony website. In our effort, we remolded it to make it Diagonal 23.2 mm (Type 4/3) Approx. 11.71M-Effective Pixel.

High-Sensitivity Type 4/3 CMOS Image Sensor that Supports 4K for Astronomic Camera and Industrial Applications

The “IMX294CJK” is the first in-house image sensor for astronomic cameras to adopt the Type 4/3 format, and realizes output of the number of pixels needed for 4K at 120 frame/s (in ADC 10-bit output mode, ASI 294MC can run up to 25fps at 4k format base on USB3.0 bandwidth). In addition, use of a large-size pixel achieves SNR1s of 0.14 lx* which is very close to the value from ASI224(0.13 lx*)

Exceptional low-illumination performance

Exceptional low-illumination performance of SNR1s: 0.14 lx is realized by the use of a large-size optical system and by expanding the area per pixel to 4.63 µm. This makes the IMX294CJK ideal for astronomic camera market applications that require low-illumination performance.

14bit ADC & 13 stops DR

ASI294 has 14bit ADC and it can achieve 13 stops dynamic range which is a little better than ASI1600.

HCG Mode

HCG mode will be on when gain is higher than 120, read noise drops below 2e but same dynamic range(13 stops).

Full well Capacity

63700e full well, which is 3 times ASI1600’s capacity.  even bright stars won’t saturate under long exposure.

This camera can achieve higher SNR(signal-to-noise ratio) with just one single exposure.

DDR Buffer

256MB DDRIII memory buffer helps data transfer more stable and no amp-glow issue which is caused by the slow speed data transfer during reading out when connected with USB2.0 Port.

USB 3.0 Port & USB2.0 HUB

USB 3.0 Port: can provide 5Gb bandwidth to make it possible for ASI294 Pro to run at 16 fps (14bit, normal mode) or 19 fps (10bit, high speed mode)  at full resolution(11.7Mega).

We recommends 12V at 3A~5A DC adapter for cooler power supply(2.1*5.5, center positive).

Battery from 9-15V is also suitable for cooling power supply.

USB 2.0 HUB: can connect with various accessories, such as a filter wheel, guide camera, and electronic focuser, so you can manage your cable better with a USB2.0 hub. There are 2 short 0.5m USB2.0 cables coming with ASI294 Pro. The power of the hub source is from the external power supply if you connect it.

Reliable Mechanics

ASI294MC Pro has same mechanics as ASI1600 Pro. 4 screws seal the chamber. This structure has been fully tested and it is very stable.

Even with a high humidity environment, ASI294MC Pro will still work fine without dew problems.

High QE

IMX294 sensor is a BSI(back-illuminated type) sensor and has very high QE(we suppose the QE peak is better than 75%)

Dark Current

The dark current of 294 is a little bit higher than 1600 from our test result.

ASI294 VS ASI1600

Let’s see this table to compare the difference between 294 and 1600 cameras: